From a press release issued by Tech Benelli:

In its very first race the production model Benelli Tornado jumps in the deep end in the National Superbike class run at the October 19, Phillip Island MotoGP meeting. Running a basically stock production Tornado, just a race muffler & ECU remap, Victorian ‘Expert’ John Orchard qualified the bike in 24th position in a field of 30, made up of Australia’s fastest factory & wildly modified GSXR1000’s, R1’s & CBR954’s and a sole Ducati 996, most sporting 190 hp engines and full race spec suspensions with Australia’s fastest riders aboard.

RACE 1, 17/10/03
DNS (did not start), after completing the warm-up lap, small stones collected in the airbox from following other riders through the unsealed Superbike paddock had worked their way past an improperly fitted aircleaner element causing major internal engine damage.

RACE 2, 18/10/03
After driving two hours back to the Melbourne workshop and working all through the previous night to repair the internal engine damage with nothing but a file to smooth the mangled piston & cylinder head, John arrived back at the track at 9am the next morning having no sleep and also not having the days previous race to use as valuable set-up & testing time in the Tornado’s very first race outing. From the 6th grid row John managed to leap past the 5th row at the start only to be left in the wake as the 190hp monsters blasted to turn one. Finishing 27th from 29 finishers, happy in the thought that we were still the first European bike home, and with a rider that had a frantic previous night with no sleep.

RACE 3, 18/10/03
With only a ½ hour break between races on the 30° C day the bikes had barely enough time to cool as they lined up for race three, with some riders and machines failing to make it to the end of the race, the Tornado finished 20th from 23 finishers, again the first Euro bike home and happily running with big horsepower machines due to the impeccable handling of the Italian machine.

CONCLUSION
John, not having raced since returning from the US in 2001 and only just having had a pair of titanium knee replacements only two months earlier says; “the Tornado is a fantastic bike, once we get into the engine and unleash some more performance as the other teams have done and set-up the original suspension for track use I think we’ll surprise a few people”.

Copyright 2003, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

AMA SuperMoto Final Results
Dallas, Texas
October 19
1. Jeff Ward, Honda
2. Boris Chambon, KTM
3. Doug Henry, Yamaha
4. Jeremy McGrath, Honda
5. Ben Carlson, KTM
6. Steven Drew, Honda
7. Mike Metzger, Honda
8. *Larry Pegram, KTM
9. Mark Avard, Suzuki
10. Mark Burkhart, Yamaha
18. *Roger Lee Hayden, Honda
19. *Steve Johnson, Yamaha

* Road Racer


More, from a press release issued by AMA Pro Racing:

AMA Red Bull Supermoto Season to Date

Round 1: July 11-13, 2003 – Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca, Monterey, CA

The first ever AMA Red Bull Supermoto took place on a huge stage, sharing the spotlight with World and U.S. Superbike competition at Laguna Seca. Troy Lee Design Honda’s Jeremy McGrath stole the holeshot and controlled much of the race, with teammate Jeff Ward and KTM’s Kurt Nicoll stalking the supercross legend. On lap 17 of 24, McGrath made a mistake, losing the front end ever so slightly and allowing Ward and Nicoll to pounce. Ward went on to grab the series’ first victory, with Nicoll second and McGrath rounding out the podium.

In support class action, Nicoll found himself on top of the Supermoto Unlimited podium after working past fellow KTM rider Joe Kopp on lap 14. Teenager Chris Fillmore gave KTM a 1-2-3 sweep. Youngster Mike Alessi took the first Honda Red Riders Jr. Supermoto checkered flag.


Round 2: September 1, 2003 — South Boston Speedway, South Boston, VA

Round 2 at South Boston Speedway was twice pushed back. While originally scheduled to run Saturday night under the lights, it eventually took place on Monday afternoon due to uncooperative weather. As a result, a number of riders didn’t stay for the entire competition. Doug Chandler stepped forward to dominate the race, taking a wire-to-wire victory. After getting his AMA Supermoto career off to a slow at Laguna Seca, the former multi-time Superbike champ was in his element at the high-speed South Boston circuit, showing off trademark smooth style while running away at the front. Chandler’s KTM understudy, 18-year-old Ben Carlson, took second. Suzuki’s Mark Avard grabbed third and the season’s points lead when Mike Metzger crashed out of the position late in the event.

16-year-old Chris Fillmore diced past Carlson and Mickey Dymond early on to walk away with the Supermoto Unlimited race. Carlson held on for second, while Larry Pegram edged Chandler to take third.


Round 3: October 5, 2003 — PromoWest Pavilion, Columbus, OH

Jeff Ward made his AMA Supermoto return in Round 3 and again was victorious after running most of the event chasing the leader. This time the early pacesetter was Ben Carlson, who held off series newcomer Doug Henry’s supreme skill in the dirt section with equally strong pavement riding over the first half of the contest. Henry’s bid for a win in his first supermoto race fell apart when the Yamaha rider crashed trying to find a way past the teenager. Ward picked up the challenge and forced Carlson into a mistake of his own. Jeremy McGrath grabbed second with Henry remounting to take third. Ward’s win moved him into a tie with fifth place finisher Mark Avard in the season’s points standings.

Carlson won the Supermoto Unlimited race, despite having to start from the back of the pack after coming together with KTM teammate Doug Chandler at the original start and bringing out a red flag. Vertemati rider Leonardo Bagnis claimed second with Chris Fillmore third. Carter Myers held off Aaron King to win the Jr. Supermoto Challenge.


Round 4: October 18, 2003 — Reunion Arena, Dallas, TX

Jeff Ward continued his perfect AMA Supermoto form, winning his third race in three attempts at the wide-open Reunion Arena circuit in downtown Dallas. Ward took the early lead, fighting back a challenge from Grant Langston over the opening laps. The South African’s debut AMA Supermoto soon took a turn for the worse as his bike stalled on lap 5 after clipping a hay bale in the tunnel section of the course. Ward then waited for charging World Supermoto star Boris Chambon to make a bid for the win after pushing his way up through the field. Chambon, the fastest man all day long, missed out on Superpole and a shot at a top grid position when he retired from his qualifying heat race while leading. The Frenchman skillfully worked his way up to second from his lowly semi-final-earned spot on the grid and by the halfway point was within several bike lengths of Ward. Chambon had no answer when the Troy Lee Designs Honda ace stepped up his pace over the final several laps, however. Yamaha rider Doug Henry out-dueled Jeremy McGrath to finish in third. Ward’s third win of the year put him alone out front in the points race.

Earlier, Chambon was victorious in impressive fashion in the Supermoto Unlimited final. Ben Carlson finished second with Mickey Dymond completing the KTM podium sweep. 12-year-old Colter Dimick dominated the Jr. Supermoto Challenge.

Round 5 of the series is set for Nov. 1 at Irwindale Speedway.

Copyright 2003, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

By Dennis Noyes

Dunlop technicians were smiling to see the first five places taken by their riders at the end of Friday’s first qualifying session at Magny Cours, the final round of the 2003 World Superbike Chamionship. Britain’s Chris Walker was quickest in qualifying on his HM Plant Ducati followed by Regis Laconi (Ducati), Gregorio Lavilla (Alstare Suzuki) and James Toseland (HM Plant Ducati) with Pier Francesco Chili fifth on his PGS-1 Ducati. Works Ducati riders Ruben Xaus and Neil Hodgson qualified fifth and ninth respectively and both complained of braking problems due to the 17 degree C ambient temperatures that gave them no grip and no feeling under heavy braking with their Michelin tires.

Hodgson attributed his problems directly to the cold conditions. “There is just not enough heat in the tire give traction. It is a problem on the brakes but even more coming out of the corners. The tire is spinning on the exit from the slow tires. We were here last Friday with normal temperatures, but this feels like a different track.”

Xaus crashed in the morning’s free session but came back in the afternoon to finish less than 0.8-second off the pole. “There is a white line across the track that you can’t miss. It was no problem last week so I just forgot about it, but this morning I was changing direction on the left-right at the end of the home straight and as I touched the line with the front end light, it went and I was down. That was because of the cold. Now I have to change my racing line to keep the bike up-right longer. This is Dunlop and Pirelli weather, but we are in France so I expect Michelin to find an answer for tomorrow. I’ve had Fridays as bad as this before, but not worse. We are in trouble. I cannot brake where I want and the rear tire is no good on braking at all meaning I have to brake harder up front, upsetting the balance and getting the rear almost off the ground. The morning sessions are useless in the cold and we have our final qualifying tomorrow in the morning, but our free practice is in the afternoon and that is when I will work hard to find a race tire and race settings.”

Walker attributed his good performance to having had his first private test session since the pre-season. “I feel very comfortable here after having had a two day test. This is the first time I have really gotten anywhere ready to race. I was still learning the bike at Valencia, but today we showed up with the bike sorted and knowing our way around the track. The cold? This is a normal day in British racing. I’m not bothered.”

Regis Laconi was making his last ride for the HM Plant team; he and James Toseland have been signed to ride the works Fila Ducati 999s next year and the Frenchman, still looking for his first win of the year on the on the NCR 998, was very uncomfortable today. “All the work from private testing is thrown away. This is not the same track and the tires we found to work so good now are no good. Suspension is different. We had to start over. Sure I am second, but the bike is not good.”

Lavilla found more problems with the brakes than with the tires. “The bike is worse than last week. I went a little faster but that is because of the pressure of official qualifying. For me the problem is from the brakes. The cold tires do not grip and I have to use different braking points. I can’t use small discs to make heat because the small Brembos are not strong enough but the big Brembos run too cold. I have asked for softer pads.”

The paddock is still waiting for news on Neil Hodgson and Ruben Xaus. Hodgson is still expected to go to MotoGP with the D’Antin Ducati team, but Xaus’ future is in the air. “I have no contract yet. Ducati still want me to go to America but we have no deal yet. Repsol want me in MotoGP and would back me in the D’Antin team if Ducati do not insist on Shell, but Repsol have also talked to me about a MotoGP ride with Honda taking the place Rossi will leave. It is not something I expected or even dreamed of, but if this offer comes it would be hard to refuse. Right now I am still a Superbike rider for Ducati so until Sunday I will concentrate on trying to win here in France. Then we will see. Maybe I should start looking for a SuperTT bike for Las Vegas! It won’t be cold there in November will it?”

From a press release issued by Team Arizona Road Race Club (TARRC) Race Director Gary Stiles:

Mark Ledesma won the TARRC AZROADRACING.COM Unlimited GP season opener at Arizona Motorsports Park in Lithcfield, Arizona on Sunday Oct. 19.

Ledesma, on board his North Valley Honda CBR954RR, took the lead early-on and began to pull away from the rest of the pack. Joe Dawson and Lenny Beckman battled for second while Kane Lasky mounted a hard-charging attack from the mid pack. On lap four Lasky passed several riders to take over second, and it began to look like he could catch Ledesma. It was on lap five when Lasky let it fly making up several bikelengths on Ledesma, and setting a new lap record of 1:37.30, Lasky went on to turn a 1:37.37 on lap six and inched even closer to Ledesma. On lap seven Lasky’s charge fell apart when he lowsided in turn 15. Lasky was uninjured, and Ledesma went on to take the checkered flag and a check for $1500.

Ledesma also took home a check for $250 for a second in the Helmet Harbor/Pipe City Middleweight GP, while Lasky netted a total of $1500 with wins in both the North Valley Honda Heavyweight GP, and the Helmet Harbor/Pipe City Middleweight GP.

Racers shared a total of $8000, in cash purses.

Copyright 2003, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

Attack Suzuki’s Josh Hayes won the second-annual Toyota 200 at Willow Springs International Raceway Sunday, earning $50,000.

Attack Suzuki’s Vincent Haskovec finished second and won $30,000. Third-place Chuck Graves won $10,000 on his Graves Yamaha YZF-R1 and fourth-place Rich Oliver rode his Team Oliver Yamaha TZ250 to fourth, winning $5000.

The race paid a $150,000 purse with 40th place earning $1000.

Hayes, who started on pole and got the holeshot, battled early with teammate-for-the-weekend Vincent Haskovec, who replaced out-with-injuries Jason Pridmore. Graves Yamaha YZF-R1-mounted Chuck Graves and Team Moto Liberty Honda CBR954RR rider Doug Polen closely followed the Attack Suzukis of Hayes and Haskovec early, but Polen was black-flagged on lap four with an oil leak and retired, and Graves slowly fell back after lap 10.

Hayes and Haskovec swapped the lead several times, setting a blistering pace in the mid-1:20 range for the first 23 laps. But on lap 24 Haskovec mistakenly pitted early, catching his team off guard and the result was a 25-second first pit stop. A 13-second stop for Hayes put him out in front of Haskovec by over 10 seconds and Hayes never looked back.

Hayes continued to click off laps in the 1:21 and 1:22 range for the remainder of the race to take the win by over 20 seconds. Despite the slow first pit stop, and still recovering from the flu, Haskovec brought home that heroic second. Graves rode a consistent race, turning laps in the 1:22 and 1:23 range the whole race, but lost over 10 seconds on each of his 20-seconds-plus stops and finished third.

Iron man Rich Oliver, who had already won the 20-lap Roadracingworld.com 250/50 earlier in the day, used the same Yamaha TZ250 to take fourth in the 200, one lap down on the leaders. Oliver battled with Jack Pfiefer, Adam “Crusty” Fergusson and Jeff Tiget, all on Suzuki GSX-R1000s, early-on.

Fergusson, on the Lion Racing GSX-R1000, fought through handling and electrical problems but called it a day just after the halfway mark. Tigert was able to hold onto fifth, two laps down on the lead trio. Pfiefer, on a Team Pro Motion GSX-R1000, rode a steady race and had relatively fast pit stops, around 20 seconds each, and took sixth.

Finishing in seventh, on the same lap as Pfiefer, three behind the leaders, was Robbie Dowie on another Suzuki. Mike Montoya, who, like Oliver, rode his Yamaha TZ250 in both races, finished eighth, 18 seconds behind Dowie. (Montoya took second in the Roadracingworld.com 250/50.)

In the closest finish of the race, Scott Jensen held off Stoney Landers by 0.5-second to take ninth. Both riders were on Suzuki GSX-R1000s.

Complete results will be posted when they are available, which, according to WSMC officials, will be on Monday morning.

Copyright 2003, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

Magny-Cours, France
World Superbike Race One Results:

1. Neil Hodgson, Ducati 999F03, 23 laps, 39:03.738
2. Ruben Xaus, Ducati 999F03, 39:04.086
3. Chris Walker, Ducati 998F02, 39:17.449
4. Gregorio Lavilla, Suzuki GSX-R1000, 39:17.688
5. James Toseland, Ducati 998F02, 39:25.218
6. Regis Laconi, Ducati 998RS, 39:36.158
7. Steve Martin, Ducati 998RS, 39:44.836
8. Troy Corser, Foggy Petronas FP1, 39:44.942
9. Juan Borja, Ducati 998RS, 40:22.475
10. Mauro Sanchini, Kawasaki ZX-7RR, 40:34.055
11. Sergio Fuertes, Suzuki GSX-R1000, 40:50.272
12. Christian Zaiser, Suzuki GSX-R1000, 40:51.892
13. Bertrand Stey, Honda RC51, -1 lap
14. Frederic Protat, Yamaha YZF-R1, -1 lap
15. Horst Saiger, Yamaha YZF-R1, -1 lap
16. Pierfrancesco Chili, Ducati 998RS, -3 laps, DNF
17. Marco Borciani, Ducati 998RS, -4 laps, DNF
18. Alex Gramigni, Yamaha YZF-R1, -5 laps, DNF
19. Leon Haslam, Ducati 998RS, -14 laps, DNF
20. Lucio Pedercini, Ducati 998RS, -21 laps, DNF
21. David Garcia, Ducati 998RS, -21 laps, DNF
22. Sebastien Gimbert, Suzuki GSX-R1000, -22 laps, DNF
23. Ivan Clementi, Kawasaki ZX-7RR, -23 laps, DNF
24. James Haydon, Foggy Petronas FP1, -23 laps, DNF

From a press release issued by Team Suzuki News Service:

KAUFMANN TAKES CUP VICTORY

GSX-R Cup Press Office
Magny Cours, France
October 19th 2003

A fine blend of skill, experience and determination proved the winning formula for Germany’s Herman Kaufmann in today’s GSX-R Cup Final races at Magny Cours.

The forty two year old German from Ismaning lead both races into the final lap, but made his second and third places count for a winning overall points victory ahead of Britain’s Steve Brogan. Oriol Fernandez from Spain tied on points for third place with Di Foggia of France, but his better second race place gave him the advantage

A total of 28 Suzuki GSX-R riders from 15 countries around the world qualified for today’s GSX-R Cup Final by competing in qualifying races in their home countries for a place on the start line of this unique event. The riders drew lots for their identically prepared GSX-R750 machines which are basically stock specification with Yoshimura exhaust and brake components, Michelin Pilot tires, Motul Oils, Sunstar Sprockets, NGK race plugs and RK race chain.


RACE 1 – 10 LAP
Britain’s Steve Brogan stormed away from sixth place on the grid to take the lead in the race to the first turn with French hopes Robert Di Foggia and Thomas Metro tucked in behind. Pole man Luca Conforti was out of luck, clashing with Japan’s Koji Teramoto on the second lap, ending his pre-race hopes of victory. Germany’s Herbert Kaufman made a steady start from third place on the grid and displaced Metro for third place on the third lap. Brogan, De Foggia and Kaufman started to make a break on the fourth place battle of Metro and Fernandez, taking the pace into the 1:49s. Kaufman pushed through to second on lap five, but the with less than a second covering the leading trio it was still anyone’s race. Kaufman and Brogan swapped the lead going into the eighth lap, with Kaufman taking the advantage and holding it into the last lap. Brogan kept a safe distance as Kaufman outbraked himself half-way round the final lap and going into the penultimate corner, he dived inside to snatch the lead in sensational style, taking the flag just 0.224 seconds ahead of Kaufman and 0.663 seconds in front of Di Foggia. Fernandez took a safe fourth place after a mid-race battle with Metro.

RACE 1 RESULTS:
1 Brogan 20pts
2 Kaufmann 17pts
3 Di Foggia 15pts
4 Fernandez 13pts
5 Metro 11pts
6 Opie Caylor, USA, 10pts
7. Nebel 9pts
8 Mancuso 8pts
9 Bugden 7pts
10 Tray Batey, USA, 6pts
11 Tamitsuji 5pts
12 Vleugels 4pts
13 Kispataki 3pts
14 Melone 2pts
15 Corey Eaton, USA, 1pt.


RACE 2 – 10 LAPS
Kaufmann and Fernandez both made better starts second time out and set about trying to pull a gap over Conforti, Brogan and Kennaugh. Conforti and Kennaugh were especially on a mission to prove their speed after both falling early in the first race and found their way round Fernandez as Brogan dropped back, having taken the best from his tires in his first race win. Brogan re-passed Kennaugh briefly, but the South African was in a determined mood and quickly rejoined Kaufmann and Conforti in the three way battle for the lead with Fernandez holding a close forth. Into the final lap and Conforti made his move on Kaufmann, who knew from his pit board that both Conforti and Kennaugh were on his tail, but out of the overall reckoning. Without the need to take risks with two hard races on his tires he settled for third place at the flag behind Conforti and Kennaugh to take the overall victory.

RACE 2 RESULTS:
1 Conforti 20pts
2 Kennaugh 17pts
3 Kaufmann 15pts
4 Fernandez 13pts
5 Di Foggia 11pts
6 Nebel 10pts
7 Brogan 9pts
8 Bugden 8pts
9 Tamitsuji 7pts
10 Mancuso 6pts
11 Kispataki 5pts
12 Vleugels 4pts
13 Flueckiger 3pts
14 Melone 2pts
15 Opie Caylor, USA, 1pt.


OVERALL POINTS:
1 Kaufmann 32pts
2 Brogan 29pts
3 Fernandez 26pts
4 Di Foggia 26pts
5 Conforti 20pts
6 Nebel 19pts
7 Kennaugh 17pts
8 Bugden 15pts
9 Mancuso 14pts
10 Tamitsuji 12pts
11 Opie Caylor, USA, 11pts
12 Metro 11pts
13 Kispataki 8pts
14 Vleugels 8pts
15 Tray Batey, USA, 6pts
16 Melone 4pts
17 Flueckiger 3pts
18 Corey Eaton, USA, 1pt.


The two GSX-R Cup final races were part of the program at the final round of the 2003 World Superbike Series here at Magny Cours.